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We're live from Facebook's 2011 f8 developer conference! (video)
Oh yeah, we're here, live at the f8 developers conference in San Francisco, and we're going to give you a blow by blow of what's in store for all you Facebook-loving folks. The streets is talking and the rumor mill's churning at full bore about what we can expect, but Mark Zuckerberg's keynote is mere minutes away, and all will be revealed soon. So, check back here to get the scoop on all the new social-networking goodies as he dishes them out. Update: And it's underway. Head on past the break for the live stream.
Facebook sets sights on Instagram users with photo filter integration
What now Instagram? You wouldn't sell to Facebook and now ol' Zucks is moving on without you. That's right, friends... the social network genius himself is scheming alongside his engineers to integrate photo filters within the company's mobile application. The CEO hopes to lure users away from the popular photography app and keep them tethered to his site via mobile handset. Apparently the tech has been ready for a bit, but the boss wants his team to add more editing options before the feature is released into the wild.
Skype comes to Facebook, and Facebook comes to Skype (update: available now!)
It ain't the first time Mark Zuckerberg has taken the stage to announce... something, but today's shindig is resulting in "something" that's a bit more exciting for the average user. As rumored, the world's most notable VoIP service is set to become exceedingly integrated with the world's most notable social network. Skype has just thrown up a teaser page for v5.3 for Windows (and v5.5 Beta), noting that Skype and Facebook will aim to provide "the best of both worlds." Zuck is primarily announcing three main things today: group chat, a new way to chat ("an easier way to find someone who is online") and Skype-enabled video chat. Oh, and the tiny, tiny fact that there's now 750 million Facebook members. What's notable is just how easy it is to fire up a group chat (or send transcripts to group members who miss out) and get a video call going using your existing Skype contact list. A single click is all it takes, and we're told that it'll be rolled out to everyone "over the next few weeks" in 70 different languages. The new chat design will be scalable based on your browser size, and the company made a point to mention that it'll be listening closely to user input in order to iterate as it moves forward. Tony Bates stepped up to the plate, and noted that over 300 million videocall minutes a month are going through Skype, and at peak times, over half of its traffic is video. He also noted that the technology behind it was "tough" to construct, but somehow it managed to hammer this whole thing out in around six months via joint development. There's also talk about future "paid products" in due time, and it's strikingly clear that this partnership isn't going to fade anytime soon. If you're looking to take a dive yourself, hit up the source links below for the Windows applications, and wear that F5 button out over at Facebook's homepage if you're more of the "in-browser" type. Oh, and if you're curious about mobile -- video chat isn't active on that front yet, and Mark's not spilling any details on "when." To quote him on a question of time tables: "We'll see." Update: Those on the web can get started right now. Of note, this forces open the familiar chat bar, so it doesn't much look like you can hide from "those people" while attempting to find folks on Skype. Sadly, we're also seeing that doing so can add loads of Facebook contacts to your Skype program, and there's no real way to see that it's happening until it's too late. Clever, Mark. Update 2: We've spent a little time with both of the new options, and you can read up on our impressions here!
Facebook is preparing an iPad app
According to the New York Times, Facebook is finally making an official iPad app. While Facebook's iPhone app has been in the App Store from day one, it's been a long, long wait for an iPad version of the popular social networking site. When asked about the possibility of an iPad app last November, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg reportedly said such an app wasn't in the works because "The iPad isn't mobile." It looks like that was an ephemeral "no" worthy of Steve Jobs. According to the Times, Facebook's iPad app has been in testing for nearly a year, and Zuckerberg himself has been closely involved in its development. People familiar with the app's development say its design is "slick" and well-optimized for the iPad's screen, and it includes photo/video uploading features tied directly to the iPad 2's built-in cameras. Thus far, iPad users unsatisfied with the way Facebook's site functions on a touchscreen-based device have had to make do with third-party applications. I've been using Friendly for iPad, but I'm still curious to see how Facebook's official app turns out. As we heard earlier, Facebook is also planning an HTML5 application platform called "Project Spartan," but according to the Times' source, that is intended to "supplement" the iPad app rather than compete with it. Like the iPhone app, Facebook for iPad will be free. It is expected to debut on the App Store within the next few weeks.
Facebook granted patent for tagging digital media
It's taken the US Patent and Trademark Office four and half years to consider it, but Facebook now finally has a patent on one of its central features: photo tagging. Applied for in October 2006 and just granted this week, this legal doc gives Mark Zuckerberg and a couple of his buddies credit for designing a method for identifying users in "a selection of an item of digital media." That could be photos, video, audio, or text -- the main drive of the patent is that it lets people associate a given chunk of media with a person and inform others of this association. The wording of Facebook's claims is rather specific -- you have to, for example, allow the identified person the opportunity to reject the identification -- so having this patent need not necessarily preclude other sites like Flickr from engaging in similar, but not identical, behavior.
Facebook, Google rumored to be vying for Skype deal
Like two knights jostling for the hand of a fair maiden, both Facebook and Google appear to be courting the graces of Skype. A source close to Facebook recently told Reuters that CEO Mark Zuckerberg is thinking about buying Skype outright, as part of a deal that could be worth $3 to $4 billion. A second source, meanwhile, claimed that both Facebook and Google are more interested in forming a joint venture with the teleconferencing company, which has yet to issue an IPO. With discussions still in a nascent stage, both suitors are playing their cards close to their chests, while Skype, rather coyly, has declined to comment on the speculation. At this point, details are still hazy and rumor-infused, though it's certainly not shocking to hear these kinds of murmurs buzzing around. Skype's been integrating Facebook more deeply into its software for a while now and has gradually branched out to Android, as well (albeit with mixed results). Both Facebook and Google would also stand to benefit from Skype's millions of users and all the targeted advertising potential they'd offer. Until we receive more substantiated reports, however, all discussions of possible unions remain restricted to the realm of conjecture.
Facebook's Open Compute Project shares plans for energy-efficient data center
We know, you've seen an awful lot of Zuckerberg and crew here lately, and the Facebook news just keeps rolling in. This time the social networking giant is doing some sharing of a different sort by offering public access to the specifications and best practices behind its new, more efficient data center in Prineville, Oregon. According to the company, the center, built in collaboration with AMD, Dell, HP, and Intel, has boosted energy efficiency by 38 percent while lowering cost by 24 percent. The information now available through the Open Compute Project includes technical specs and mechanical CAD files for everything from servers to building design. Basically, if you want to erect your own multi-million dollar Facebook-style data center, you've got the go ahead. Full PR after the break.
President Obama to appear at Facebook HQ for Town Hall meeting
Looks like President Obama and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg just can't get enough of each other. Just two months after his tech industry schmooze fest, the White House has announced the Commander in Chief's plans to hold a live streaming Town Hall meeting from Facebook HQ with Zuckerberg and COO Sheryl Sandberg. The event is set for 1:45PM PST April 20th, and already has 3,400 attendees lined up. Users are encouraged to submit their questions about innovation and the economy via the event's Facebook page, and the comments are already rolling in. Somehow, though, we don't think this is the sort question he's likely to answer: "Dear President Obama, could we please be friends?" Sorry, Carolina.
Heads of Google, eBay, Facebook and Twitter will advise G8 summit on how to search, sell, poke and RT
So what if Barack Obama managed to bring the vast majority of US tech leaders in for a private meeting recently? Nicolas Sarkozy can do it too! The French président and soon-to-be host of the next G8 gathering is said to be preparing some rather handsome invitations to Mark Zuckerberg, Eric Schmidt and a few other big timers from the internet in order to discuss the world wide web's future direction. The input from these web sages is to be filtered down into a volume of extremely precious wisdom, which is to then be conveyed to the multinational meeting taking place in Deauville near the end of May. Sarkozy just needs to make sure the other seven participating nations don't object before sending out the official invites. We have a pretty good idea of what Eric Schmidt thinks our future will involve, but Zuckerberg and the others? That'll be interesting to hear.
Caption Contest: Obama has dinner with tech industry CEOs
Barack Obama is a president well known for being in touch with technology, so it's no surprise to see him wining and dining the industry's biggest decision makers. Larry Ellison, Eric Schmidt, Carol Bartz, Mark Zuckerberg, and yes, even Steve Jobs joined el presidente for an informal dinner on Thursday to discuss important things like jobs, education, and research spending. We're not here for that, though, we're here to drop zingers about one all-powerful dude and his big-time CEO buddies. Thomas: "Here's to project Soylent Green." Joe: "This sure beats the Four Loko Summit we held last summer on the White House lawn." Chris: "So let's just jam through this dinner real quick." Josh T: "I hope no one authorizes a 'kill switch' on this party." Paul: "At this very moment we're millions of miles from a doomed planet Earth!" Nilay: "Gentlemen, Ballmer has neutralized the Finnish threat." Richard Lai: "Drink up, kids -- it's Dance Central time!" Tim: "Zuck, it's like Final Club, except with the President."
Steve Jobs to meet with President Obama today
According to ABC News, President Obama's West Coast field trip is going to kick off in San Francisco with dinner. Not just any dinner, mind you. This happens to be dinner with the outgoing CEO of Google, Eric Schmidt, Mark Zuckerberg (who built some sort of newfangled website) and our own Uncle Steve. According to the White House, they are meeting as part of an "ongoing dialogue with the business community on how we can work together to win the future, strengthen our economy, support entrepreneurship, and get the American people back to work." After dinner, there is no further published information on the official White House schedule, so I don't know who will get to put up their "The President Slept Here" sign. However, once he's wrapped things up in the Bay Area, it's been announced that Obama is spending Friday in my neck of the woods, visiting one of Intel's plants in Hillsboro, Oregon. He'll be there with Intel CEO Paul Otellini talking about Intel's investments in educational programs and manufacturing upgrades at their plants in Oregon and in Arizona. This is the second time the President has formally met with Jobs. Their first publicized get-together took place in October of 2010. [via AppleInsider]
Gemalto puts Facebook on a SIM chip, Zuckerberg's plan for world domination coming along nicely
Smart card guru Gemalto is going to help Mark Zuckerberg take over the world! Ok, not really, but the company has made it possible to put Facebook on just about every GSM phone on earth by running it on a SIM chip. This allows every poke, friend request, and wall post to be transmitted by SMS -- meaning no data plan required -- so that the non-smartphone crowd can access Facebook on the go too. Gemalto, using only the brightest and most creative marketing minds out there, has named the solution "Facebook for SIM." Users get a free trial for an undisclosed period of time before a subscription for the service becomes necessary -- carriers are positively salivating at the prospect of all that extra SMS traffic lining their already deep pockets, no doubt. We knew that Mark had big plans for putting Facebook on phones, but we didn't figure that dumbphones would get to join in the social networking fun. Finally, a chicken in every pot and a Facebook phone (or three) in every home.
Zuckerberg: Expect 'dozens' of Facebook phones this year (update)
He's said it before: there will be no Facebook phone. And now it's clear what he meant -- Zuck's strategy is to integrate Facebook into every phone telling us today at the HTC launch event in Barcelona that we're only seeing the first wave of Facebook-enabled phones hitting the market, with dozens of phones featuring deep social integration coming this year. See Mark (or is it?) lay down the law after the break. Update: Facebook's official blog just chimed in with some factual heat -- some of those "dozens" of new Facebook phones will have the social network "as an element of the device hardware itself." If you ask us, it sounds like the physical Facebook button is going to be a thing.
Mark Zuckerberg meets the fake Mark Zuckerbergs on Saturday Night Live (video)
Mark Zuckerberg, the man who invented poking and the subject of a major motion picture in 2010 just met his nemeses on the set of Saturday Night Live. No, not the Winklevoss twins, we're talking Jesse Eisenberg, the man nominated for an Academy Award after playing Zuckerberg in The Social Network. Toss in Andy Samberg and we've got a comically uncomfortable situation from Web 2.0's very personification of awkward. All hail the Zuck Bergs!
Apple employees love Steve Jobs
Silicon Alley Insider has put together a chart that shows the approval ratings employees have for various CEOs at major tech companies. The chart is based on data from Glassdoor.com and reveals that Steve Jobs is the most-favored CEO, ranked by his own employees, followed closely by Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook and Eric Schmidt of Google. Employees at struggling Yahoo give their CEO, Carol Bartz, a high-50s point rating, while outspoken Microsoft CEO, Steve Ballmer, comes in last place out of the companies listed in the chart. Earlier this year Barron's published a list of tech's most-respected CEOs which put Steve Jobs in the number one spot and called him "the world's most valuable CEO."
Don't hold your breath for a Facebook iPad app
While many of us (including me) are clamoring for an official iPad Facebook app, Mark Zuckerberg pretty much dashed any hopes for one at today's Facebook Mobile Event. When asked why there wasn't an official iPad app yet, Zuckerberg replied, "The iPad isn't mobile." Uh, what? He apparently later back tracked and said that while he loves working with Apple, the iPad isn't as mobile as a phone. Erick Tensing, Facebook's head of Mobile Products, then explained that the explosion of tablets isn't going to be about the iPad alone and there would be many offerings from vendors running Android OS. That leads Facebook to believe that committing limited resources to one tablet just doesn't make sense. What you're gonna see, according to TechCrunch's Jason Kincaid, is a web-based mobile app version of Facebook that targets tablets across the board. All I'm asking now is that they hurry it up, besides some feature loss while viewing Facebook on an iPad, the entire site locked iPad owners out of zooming and scaling a few weeks back. Facebook released an updated version of its app for iPhone and iPod touch earlier today. [via TechCrunch]
Updated Facebook app released for iPhone and iPod touch
TechCrunch reports that Mark Zuckerberg showed off the new version of his company's Facebook for iPhone app at today's Mobile Event. Facebook v3.3 adds a new Groups feature and also updates the existing Places feature. Among the improvements to Places, it will now be easier to tag your friends into a venue and it will be easier to add photos alongside a check-in. The update also features a Deals function that lets you "discover great deals around you" (translation: here comes the location-based advertising). Zuckerberg also said that the Facebook app was on the "vast majority of iPhones." The updated Facebook app is now available in the App Store.
CE-Oh no he didn't!: Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg says 'the iPad's not mobile... it's a computer'
Facebook's mobile event today may not have had the revelations many were expecting, but CEO Mark Zuckerberg did drop a bomb of sorts in the Q&A at the end. Responding to a question about a possible Facebook iPad app, Zuckerberg shot back by saying that "the iPad's not mobile... it's a computer." Of course, he did quickly clarify that he didn't mean to be rude to Apple, and added that "we all love Apple products," the iPad just "isn't mobile in the same way."
Steve Jobs friends Mark Zuckerberg to talk about Ping
The Los Angeles Times is reporting that Steve Jobs invited Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to his house for dinner a few weeks ago. The dinner is presumed to have been a meeting about Ping and Facebook integration. Despite getting over one million users in 48 hours, Ping has yet to gain much traction in the social networking world. Ping is designed to follow your friends and find what music they like. Right now, finding your friends is a bit of a pain, but if Ping users could find their friends via Facebook Connect it would do much to increase Ping membership and use. When Ping first launched, Facebook Connect access was briefly implemented before being quickly blocked by Facebook. A few days later Steve Jobs told All Things Digital that Facebook had "onerous terms that we could not agree to" regarding Facebook friends connecting on Ping. But just two weeks ago Facebook CTO Bret Taylor told Silicon Alley Insider that he's "very confident" that the two companies could find common ground to work together. The Times article interestingly points out that years ago Apple was Facebook's first big commercial sponsor through its Apple Students group. But, as we've learned from a certain movie, many of Facebook's original friends have become enemies. Let's hope the dinner has brought two of the biggest names in tech closer together (and come up with a Facebook iPad app in the process).
Trent Reznor: Mark Zuckerberg is no Steve Jobs
In a recent interview with Drowned in Sound, former Nine Inch Nails front man Trent Reznor discussed the Social Network soundtrack and exactly why Mark Zuckerberg is no Steve Jobs. Reznor is currently promoting the soundtrack he recorded for The Social Network, otherwise known as "the Facebook movie." In the interview, Trent describes why he's not a fan of Facebook; specifically, the license that it and similar services seem to give users to exaggerate themselves, saying, "I've seen that with people I know in real life, and I check them out online, it's not always the same person." He also goes on to describe the media's current fascination with Zuckerberg and compares it to another famous tech company CEO: "When I see the media heralding Zuckerberg, putting him up on a pedestal of genius and mentioned in the same breathe as Steve Jobs, I'm highly degree [sic] with that. He was in the right place, at the right time, with a functional tool." Reznor has long been an Apple fan. Five years ago, he released the Nine Inch Nails songs The Hand That Feeds and Only as GarageBand files, and he's used Apple software to record both music and recent tours. However, he went on a tirade when the Nine Inch Nails app was ejected from the App Store in 2009.
